Curled decorative grass having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper

ABSTRACT

Curled decorative grasses having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof are disclosed, as are methods for making such curled decorative grasses from materials wherein at least a portion of one surface of the materials is modified to simulate the texture or appearance of paper.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of copendingapplication Ser. No. 09/499,425, entitled “DECORATIVE GRASS FORMED OFPOLYMERIC MATERIALS HAVING A TEXTURE AND APPEARANCE ASSIMILATING PAPER”,filed Feb. 7, 2000.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0002] Not applicable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The present invention relates to polymeric materials having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper, andmore particularly but not by way of limitation, to preformed,shape-sustaining flower pot covers, flower pot and floral wrappings,ribbon materials and decorative grasses made from such polymericmaterials. In one aspect, the present invention relates to methods forproducing preformed, shape-sustaining flower pot covers and methods ofwrapping floral groupings and flower pots with a sheet of polymericmaterial having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper to provide a decorative cover for such floralgroupings and flower pots. In yet another aspect, the present inventionrelates to methods of producing decorative grasses having a texture orappearance simulating the texture of appearance of paper.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sheet of polymeric materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearancepaper constructed in accordance with the present invention.

[0005]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sheet of polymeric materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper of FIG. 1 having a bonding material disposed along one edgethereof, one corner of the sheet of polymeric material upwardly turnedfor the purposes of illustration only.

[0006]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the sheet of polymeric materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper of FIG. 2 having a floral grouping disposed thereon, one corner ofthe sheet of polymeric material upwardly turned.

[0007]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the floral grouping of FIG. 3being wrapped with the sheet of polymeric material having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper of FIG. 2 byone method of wrapping.

[0008]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a decorative cover for the floralgrouping formed from the sheet of polymeric material having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper of FIG. 2wherein the decorative cover formed from the sheet of polymeric materialhas a conical configuration.

[0009]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a decorative cover for the floralgrouping formed from the sheet of polymeric material having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper of FIG. 2wherein the decorative cover has a substantially cylindricalconfiguration.

[0010]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a decorative cover positionedabout a flower pot wherein the decorative cover is formed from the sheetof polymeric material having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper of FIG. 1.

[0011]FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic view of a flower pot cover former andband applicator apparatus having the sheet of polymeric material havinga texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper ofFIG. 1 disposed above an opening of the flower pot cover former and bandapplicator and having a flower pot disposed above the sheet of polymericmaterial having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper.

[0012]FIG. 9A is a perspective view of a sheet of expanded corepolymeric film having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper wherein an acrylic heat sealable lacquer is disposedon at least one surface thereof, one corned of the sheet of expandedcore polymeric film upwardly turned.

[0013]FIG. 9B is a perspective view of a laminated sheet of materialwherein one surface is modified or textured to provide the sheet oflaminated material with a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper, one corner of the laminated sheet of materialupwardly turned.

[0014]FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a preformed pot cover formed froma sheet of polymeric material having a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper.

[0015]FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the preformed pot cover of FIG.10 having a flower pot disposed therein.

[0016]FIG. 12 is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a male andfemale mold having a sheet of polymeric material having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper disposedtherebetween for forming the preformed pot cover of FIG. 10.

[0017]FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a floral sleeve formed from thesheet of polymeric material having a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper.

[0018]FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the floral sleeve of FIG. 13disposed about a floral grouping and having a tie disposed thereabout tohold the floral sleeve in a position about the floral grouping.

[0019]FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a floral sleeve having a cinchingmember wherein the floral sleeve is formed from a sheet of polymericmaterial having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper.

[0020]FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the floral sleeve of FIG. 15disposed about a floral grouping.

[0021]FIG. 17 is an elevational view of a sleeve having a detachableportion wherein the sleeve is formed from a sheet of polymeric materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper.

[0022]FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the sleeve of FIG. 17 having aflower pot disposed therein.

[0023]FIG. 19 is a perspective view of a flower pot disposed in thesleeve of FIG. 17 wherein an upper portion of the sleeve has beenremoved to provide a decorative cover having a skirt.

[0024]FIG. 20A is a perspective view of a polymeric ribbon materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper.

[0025]FIG. 20B is a perspective view of a polymeric ribbon materialformed of an expanded core polymeric film having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper.

[0026]FIG. 20C is a perspective view of a laminated polymeric ribbonwherein at least one surface of the laminated polymeric ribbon ismodified or textured to provide the laminated polymeric ribbon with atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper.

[0027]FIG. 21 is a diagrammatic representation of a system for makingdecorative grass having a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper in accordance with the present invention.

[0028]FIG. 22A is a perspective view of a segment of decorative grasshaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper produced from a polymeric material having at least one surfacethereof textured or modified to simulate paper in texture or appearance.

[0029]FIG. 22B is a perspective view of a segment of decorative grasshaving a texture or appearance produced from a laminated polymericmaterial having at least one surface thereof textured or modified tosimulate paper in texture or appearance.

[0030]FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a sheet or web of laminatedmaterial from which decorative grass constructed in accordance with thepresent invention can be formed, the sheet or web of laminated materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper and a distortion set therein.

[0031]FIG. 24 is a perspective view of a first sheet or web of materialand a second sheet or web of material from which the sheet or web oflaminated material of FIG. 23 is constructed, the first sheet or web ofmaterial being provided with a length which is less than a length of thesecond sheet or web of material, each of the first and second sheets orwebs of material having one corner thereof upwardly turned.

[0032]FIG. 25 is a perspective view of the first and second sheets orwebs of material of FIG. 24 wherein the length of the first sheet or webof material has been stretched so that such length is the same as thelength of the second sheet or web of material.

[0033]FIG. 26A is a elevational view of decorative grass formed from thesheet or web of laminated material of FIG. 23 wherein the decorativegrass possesses a torsion spring type curl.

[0034]FIG. 26B is a elevational view of decorative grass formed from thesheet or web of laminated material of FIG. 23 wherein the decorativegrass possesses a helical spring type curl.

[0035]FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial of FIG. 9B wherein the sheet or web of laminated material iscurled.

[0036]FIG. 28 is a perspective view of the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial of FIG. 9B wherein the sheet or web of laminated material iscrimped.

[0037]FIG. 29 is a perspective view of a decorative grass formed fromthe crimped sheet or web of laminated material of FIG. 28.

[0038]FIG. 30 is a perspective view of a sheet or web of laminatedmaterial having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper and constructed in accordance with the presentinvention, the sheet or web of laminated material constructed from asheet or web of material having a substantially flat configuration and asheet or web of heat shrinkable material, the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial having one corner thereof turned upwardly.

[0039]FIG. 31 is a perspective view of the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial of FIG. 30 wherein the sheet or web of laminated material hasbeen exposed to heat.

[0040]FIG. 32 is a perspective view of a sheet or web of laminatedmaterial having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper and constructed in accordance with the presentinvention, the sheet or web of laminated material formed of a sheet orweb of material having a substantially flat configuration and a sheet orweb of material having a hygroscopic agent disposed thereon, the sheetor web of laminated material having one corner thereof turned upwardly.

[0041]FIG. 33 is a perspective view of the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial of FIG. 2 wherein the sheet or web of laminated material hasbeen exposed to moisture.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Description of FIGS. 1-9

[0042] Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, designated generally by thereference numeral 10 is a sheet or web of polymeric material having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper(hereinafter referred to as the sheet of polymeric material 10 or thesheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper). That is, at least one surface ofthe sheet of polymeric material 10 has been modified to provide a matteor textured finish simulating the texture or appearance of paper.

[0043] The modification of the sheet of polymeric material 10 to providethe sheet of polymeric material 10 with a matte or textured finishsimulating paper in texture or appearance can be accomplished in severalways. For example, a matte finish can be provided by printing a desiredpattern on the sheet of polymeric material 10 and thereafter laminatinga matte material, such as a translucent polymeric film, over the printedpattern. To further enhance the texture or appearance simulating paperof the sheet of polymeric material 10, the matte material may or may nothave a plurality of spatially disposed holes. A matte or textured finishcan also be produced by printing a sheet of polymeric material 10 with amatted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of thesheet of polymeric material 10 with a dull finish lacquer or a mattinglacquer, by embossing the sheet of polymeric material 10 to provide anembossed pattern simulating the texture and/or appearance of paper, orby embossing and printing the sheet of polymeric material to provideembossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patternsmay be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossedand printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed andprinted patterns are out of registry. A matte or textured finish capableof providing the sheet of polymeric material 10 with a texture orappearance simulating paper can also be achieved by extruding apolymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll or by laminating asecond sheet of material to the sheet of polymeric material 10. A matteor textured finish capable of providing the sheet of polymeric material10 with a texture or appearance simulating paper can also be achievedthrough the use of selected pigments, such as TiO₂.

[0044] The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearancesimulating paper has an upper surface 14, a lower surface 16, and anouter peripheral edge 18. At least one surface of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10, such as the lower surface 16, is matted or textured asdescribed above to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with atexture or appearance simulating paper. The outer peripheral edge 18 ofthe sheet of polymeric material 10 comprises a first side 20, a secondside 22, a third side 24, and a fourth side 26. A bonding material 27(FIG. 2) may be disposed on at least a portion of one or both surfaces14 and 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10, such as the uppersurface 14 thereof as shown in FIG. 2 and as further illustrated in U.S.Pat. No. 5,181,364, the specification of which is hereby expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

[0045] The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearancesimulating paper may be employed to provide a decorative cover for afloral grouping (FIGS. 3 through 6) or a decorative cover for a flowerpot (FIG. 7); to form a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flowerpot (FIGS. 10 and 11); to provide a sleeve for wrapping or covering afloral grouping (FIGS. 13 through 16) or a flower pot (FIGS. 17 through19); to provide a ribbon material (FIGS. 20A through 20C); or to producedecorative grass (FIGS. 21 through 22B). The use of the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 to form a decorative cover for a floral groupingor a flower pot wherein the decorative cover is provided with a textureor appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper, or to forma sleeve for a floral grouping or a flower pot wherein the sleeve isprovided with a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper, or to form a preformed flower pot cover having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper, oras a ribbon material having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper, or to produce decorative grasses havinga texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paperwill be described in more complete detail herein.

[0046] As noted above, the sheet of polymeric material 10 having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper canbe utilized to form a decorative cover for a floral grouping or a flowerpot. The term “flower pot” as used herein refers to any type ofcontainer for holding a floral grouping, or a plant, or even anotherpot-type container. Examples of flower pots and/or pot-type containersinclude, but are not limited to, clay pots, wooden pots, plastic pots,pots made from natural and/or synthetic fibers, or any combinationthereof. Such flower pots and/or pot-type containers are provided with aretaining space for receiving a floral grouping. The floral grouping maybe disposed within the retaining space of the flower pot with a suitablegrowing medium described in further detail below, or other retainingmedium, such as a floral foam. It will also be understood that in somecases the floral grouping, and any appropriate growing medium or otherretaining medium, may be disposed in a sleeve formed from the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 if the sleeve is adapted to contain a medium.

[0047] “Floral grouping” as used herein means cut fresh flowers,artificial flowers, a single flower or other fresh and/or artificialplants or other floral materials and may include other secondary plantsand/or ornamentation or artificial or natural materials which add to theaesthetics of the overall floral grouping. Further, the floral groupingmay comprise a growing potted plant having a root portion as well.However, it will be appreciated that the floral grouping may consist ofonly a single bloom or only foliage, or a botanical item (not shown), ora propagule. The term “floral grouping” may be used interchangeablyherein with the term “floral arrangement”. The term “floral grouping”may also be used interchangeably herein with the terms “botanical item”and/or “propagule.”

[0048] The term “growing medium” when used herein means any liquid,solid or gaseous material used for plant growth or for the cultivationof propagules, including organic and inorganic materials such as soil,humus, perlite, vermiculite, sand, water, and including the nutrients,fertilizers or hormones or combinations thereof required by the plantsor propagules for growth.

[0049] The term “botanical item” when used herein means a natural orartificial herbaceous or woody plant, taken singularly or incombination. The term “botanical item” also means any portion orportions of natural or artificial herbaceous or woody plants includingstems, leaves, flowers, blossoms, buds, blooms, cones, or roots, takensingularly or in combination, or in groupings of such portions such asbouquets or floral groupings.

[0050] The term “propagule” when used herein means any structure capableof being propagated or acting as an agent of reproduction includingseeds, shoots, stems, runners, tubers, plants, leaves, roots or spores.

[0051] In the embodiments shown in the drawings, the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 having a texture or appearance simulating paper in textureor appearance is square. It will be appreciated, however, that the sheetof polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearance simulating paperin texture or appearance can be of any shape, configuration or size aslong as the sheet of polymeric material 10 is sufficiently sized andshaped to wrap and encompass a floral grouping or a flower pot. Forexample, the sheet of polymeric material 10 may have a rectangular,round, oval, octagonal or asymmetrical shape. Further, multiple sheetsof the polymeric material 10 may be used in a single circumstance toprovide a decorative cover or sleeve for a floral grouping or a flowerpot. Moreover, when multiple sheets of the polymeric material 10 havinga texture or appearance simulating paper in texture or appearance areused in combination, the sheets of polymeric material 10 need not beuniform in size or shape. Finally, it will be appreciated that the sheetof polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper shown herein is a substantially flatsheet except for the texturing, matting, embossing, flocking,application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink, or other treatmentsand techniques employed to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10with the desired texture or matting so that the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 has a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper.

[0052] Any thickness or stiffness of the sheet of polymeric material 10may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as thesheet of polymeric material 10 can be modified to provide the sheet ofpolymeric material with a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper and the sheet of polymeric material 10 having atexture or appearance simulating paper can be wrapped about at least aportion of a floral grouping or a flower pot to form a decorative coverfor the floral grouping or the flower pot, or formed into a preformedflower pot cover for covering a flower pot, or a sleeve for wrapping orcovering a floral grouping or a flower pot, or to provide a ribbon ordecorative grass. Generally, the sheet of polymeric material 10 willhave a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mil, and moredesirably a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil. The terms“polymer film”, “polymeric film” and “polymeric material” when usedherein means a synthetic polymer such as a polypropylene, a naturallyoccurring polymer such as cellophane, an extruded polymeric materialhaving an expanded core such as extruded polypropylene having anexpanded core and combinations thereof. The extruded polymeric materialhaving an expanded core may also be referred to herein as an expandedcore polymeric material.

[0053] “Extruded polymeric material having an expanded core” or“expanded core polymeric film” as used herein means any extrudablepolymeric material or polymeric film in which the core is expandedduring extrusion, such as by incorporation of a blowing agent in thepolymeric resin which is being extruded.

[0054] The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearanceof paper may also be constructed, in whole or in part, from a clingmaterial. “Cling material” when used herein means any material which iscapable of connecting to the sheet of material and/or itself uponcontacting engagement during the wrapping process and is wrappable aboutan item whereby portions of the cling material contactingly engage andconnect to other portions of another material, or, alternatively,itself, for generally securing the material wrapped about at least aportion of a flower pot. This connecting engagement is preferablytemporary in that the material may be easily removed, i.e., the clingmaterial “clings” to the flower pot.

[0055] The cling material is constructed, and treated if necessary, frompolyethylene such as Cling Wrap made by Glad®, First Brands Corporation,Danbury, Conn. The thickness of the cling material will, in part, dependupon the size of sleeve and the size of the flower pot in the sleeve,i.e., generally, a larger flower pot may require a thicker and thereforestronger cling material. The cling material will range in thickness fromabout 0.1 mil to about 10 mil, and more desirably from about 0.5 mil toabout 2.5 mil. However, any thickness of cling material may be utilizedin accordance with the present invention which permits the clingmaterial to be modified as hereinbefore described to provide the clingmaterial with a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper.

[0056] A decorative cover for a floral grouping (FIGS. 3 through 6), ora decorative cover for a flower pot (FIG. 7), or a preformed flower potcover for covering a flower pot (FIGS. 10 and 11), or a sleeve forwrapping or covering a floral grouping (FIGS. 13 through 16) or a flowerpot (FIGS. 17 through 19), or a ribbon material (FIGS. 20A through 20C),or decorative grass (FIGS. 21 through 22B) may also be constructed of alaminated material having a texture or appearance simulating paper intexture or appearance (FIG. 9B). The laminated material having a textureor appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper can beproduced by laminating two or more sheets of polymeric film (such as twoor more sheets of polypropylene film or a sheet of polypropylene filmand a sheet of expanded core polymeric film, such as expanded corepolypropylene film), or by laminating a polymeric film (such aspolypropylene film or an expanded core polymeric film) to metallizedfoil and the like wherein at least one surface of the laminated materialis textured or modified to simulate the texture or appearance of paper.The only requirements in using a laminated material having a texture orappearance simulating paper in texture or appearance to form adecorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative cover for aflower pot, or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot,or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flower pot,or as ribbon material or decorative grass in accordance with the presentinvention is that at least one surface of the laminated material becapable of being modified to provide the laminated material with atleast one surface having a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper and that the laminated material be sufficientlyflexible or pliable to permit the laminated material to be formed into adecorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative cover for aflower pot, or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot,or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flower pot,or to be used as ribbon material or decorative grass. It should also benoted that two or more separate sheets of polymeric material can be usedto form a decorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative coverfor a flower pot, or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flowerpot, or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flowerpot as long as one of the sheets of polymeric material is modified ortextured to provide same with a texture or appearance simulating paper.

[0057] The sheet of polymeric material 10 or a laminated material (FIG.9B) having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearanceof paper may vary in color. Further, the sheet of polymeric material 10or a laminated material may be provided with other decorative patternsor designs in addition to the matting, texturing, flocking, applicationof foamable lacquers or foamable inks, or embossing employed to impart apaper-like texture or appearance to the sheet of polymeric material 10or the laminated material.

[0058] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the sheet of polymeric material 10 hasa width 30 extending generally between the first side 20 and the secondside 22, respectively, sufficiently sized whereby the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 can be wrapped about and encompass a floral grouping or aflower pot. The sheet of polymeric material 10 has a length 32 extendinggenerally between the third side 24 and the fourth side 26,respectively, sufficiently sized whereby the sheet of polymeric material10 extends over a substantial portion of the floral grouping when thesheet of polymeric material 10 has been wrapped about the floralgrouping in accordance with the present invention, as described indetail herein. The sheet of polymeric material 10 may also be wrappedabout a flower pot to substantially wrap and cover the flower pot inaccordance with the present invention.

[0059] A plurality of sheets of polymeric material 10 having a textureor appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper may beconnected together to form a roll as is shown in U.S. Pat. No.5,459,976, issued to Weder et al. on Oct. 24, 1995, entitled “MATERIALAND ADHESIVE STRIP DISPENSER”, the specification of which is herebyexpressly incorporated in its entirety herein by reference.

[0060] FIGS. 3-5 illustrate the use of the sheet of polymeric material10 having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearanceof paper for wrapping a floral grouping 34 to provide a decorative cover36 having a texture or appearance simulating paper (FIG. 5) for thefloral grouping 34, wherein the decorative cover 36 has an open upperend 38 and a lower end 40. The sheet of polymeric material 10 mayoptionally have the strip of bonding material 27 disposed upon the uppersurface 14, the lower surface 16 or both, such as the strip of bondingmaterial 27 disposed along at least a portion of the upper surface 14 ofthe sheet of polymeric material 10 so that the strip of bonding material27 is disposed substantially adjacent the fourth side 26 thereofsubstantially as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Further, the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper can be provided either as an individual sheet orfrom a pad or roll of material.

[0061] The bonding material 27, if present, may have a backing orrelease strip (not shown). The backing or release strip may be leftapplied for a period of time to the bonding material 27 after it isdisposed on a surface of the sheet of polymeric material 10 prior to itsuse as a wrapping material in order to protect the bonding qualities ofthe strip of bonding material 27.

[0062] In operation, an operator may dispose the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper on a support surface (not shown) whereby the lowersurface 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 (which has beenmodified to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper) contacts thesupport surface.

[0063] Referring more specifically to FIGS. 3-5, the floral grouping 34is placed upon the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material10 in a diagonal orientation. The floral grouping 34 has an upper bloomor foliage portion 42 and a lower stem portion 44. The sheet ofpolymeric material 10 is then wrapped about the floral grouping 34 bythe operator (FIGS. 4 and 5), the operator overlapping a portion of thesheet of polymeric material 10 over another portion of the sheet ofpolymeric material 10. That is, for example, the operator places thefirst side 20 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 over the floralgrouping 34, as shown in FIG. 4. The operator continues to roll thefloral grouping 34 and the sheet of polymeric material 10 in thedirection toward the second side 22 of the sheet of polymeric material10 until the upper surface 14 near the second side 22 firmly engages thelower surface 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10, wherein thefloral grouping 34 is substantially encompassed by the sheet ofpolymeric material 10, and wherein the bonding material 27 on the uppersurface 14 contacts the lower surface 16 of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 to provide the decorative cover 36 having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper whichsubstantially encompasses and surrounds a substantial portion of thefloral grouping 34. FIG. 5 shows the floral grouping 34 wrapped in aconical fashion to provide the decorative cover 36 for the floralgrouping 34 wherein the decorative cover 36 has a texture or appearancesimulating paper. When the floral grouping 34 is wrapped in a conicalfashion, the bloom portion 42 of the floral grouping 34 is exposed nearthe open upper end 38 of the decorative cover 36, and the stem portion44 of the floral grouping 34 is exposed near the lower end 40 of thedecorative cover 36.

[0064] In another embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 6, the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 having a texture or appearance simulating paper intexture or appearance is utilized to wrap the floral grouping 34 in acylindrical fashion. The floral grouping 34 is disposed upon the sheetof polymeric material 10 approximately parallel to the third side 24 ofthe sheet of polymeric material 10. The sheet of polymeric material 10is wrapped generally about the stem portion 44 of the floral grouping 34to a position wherein the third side 24 of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 generally overlaps the fourth side 26 of the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 in a cylindrical fashion. It should be noted thatthe sheet of polymeric material 10 may be wrapped a plurality of timesabout the stem portion 44 of the floral grouping 34 before theoverlapping of the third side 24 and the fourth side 26 of the sheet ofpolymeric material 10. As before, the portion of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 near the third side 24 is disposed generally adjacentanother portion of the sheet of polymeric material 10 and the twoadjacent portions then are brought into contact where they may bebondingly engaged, thereby securing the sheet of polymeric material 10generally about the floral grouping 34 so as to provide a decorativecover 36 a having a texture or appearance simulating paper for thefloral grouping 34.

[0065] In another version of the invention, the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 having a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper may be used to wrap a flower pot or pot-typecontainer, as noted above. Shown in FIG. 7 is a flower pot designated bythe reference numeral 50 having an open upper end 52, a bottom end 54,an outer peripheral surface 56, and an inner retaining space 58 withinwhich may be disposed a growing medium. The flower pot 50 may contain abotanical item, such as a plant 60, which has an upper portion 62comprising blooms or foliage or both.

[0066] The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper may be wrapped about theflower pot 50 by any one of numerous methods used to wrap sheets ofmaterial about flower pots to form decorative pot covers for flowerpots, such as a decorative cover 61 having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper disposed about the flowerpot 50 illustrated in FIG. 7. The sheet of polymeric material 10 havinga texture or appearance simulating paper may, for example, be formed byhand about the outer peripheral surface 56 of the flower pot 50 toproduce the decorative cover 61 which has the appearance of beingfabricated of paper. The decorative cover 61 can then be secured aboutthe flower pot 50 by a bonding material or by an elastic band 64 suchthat the open upper end 52 of the flower pot 50 remains substantiallyuncovered by the decorative cover 61 substantially as shown in FIG. 7.

[0067] Referring now to FIG. 8, a flower pot cover former and bandapplicator device 66 for forming the sheet of polymeric material 10having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper into the decorative cover 61 for the flower pot 50 of FIG. 7 isillustrated. The flower pot cover former and band applicator device 66comprises a band applicator 68 and a flower pot cover former 70. Theflower pot cover former and band applicator device 66 has a supportplatform 72 with an opening 74 formed therein. A band, such as theelastic band 64, is disposed circumferentially about the opening 74 inthe support platform 72.

[0068] The lower surface 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 (whichhas been modified to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with atextured or matted surface simulating paper in appearance) is positionedon an upper surface 76 on the support platform 72 such that the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 is positioned over the opening 74 in the supportplatform 72. The flower pot 50 is positioned above the sheet ofpolymeric material 10 and is moved in a direction 78 into the opening 74of the flower pot cover former and band applicator device 66. As theflower pot 50 is moved into the opening 74, the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 is pressed about the outer peripheral surface 56 of theflower pot 50 thereby forming the decorative cover 61 having a textureor appearance simulating paper about the flower pot 50. The decorativecover 61, which has a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper, is then secured about the flower pot 50 by theelastic band 64. The flower pot 50 having the decorative cover 61secured thereto is then moved in a direction 80 out of the opening 74 inthe support platform 72.

[0069] The elastic band 64 can be applied manually or automatically suchas by the method shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,599, issued to Weder etal. on Apr. 21, 1992, which is hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference. The band 64 can also be applied as a tie using a method suchas described in “Single Station Covering and Fastening System”, U.S.Pat. No. 5,609,009, issued to Weder et al. on Mar. 11, 1997, thespecification of which is hereby expressly incorporated herein byreference. The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper can also beapplied automatically about the flower pot 50, for example, by methodsshown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,733,521 and 5,291,721, both of which arehereby incorporated herein by reference.

[0070] Instead of securing the decorative cover 61 about the flower pot50 via the elastic band 64, the decorative cover 61 formed from thesheet of polymeric material 10 having a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper may be secured to the flower pot 50by the use of one or more bonding materials. For example, the uppersurface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 may have a bondingmaterial such as the bonding material 27 disposed upon a portionthereof. When the sheet of polymeric material 10 is disposed about theflower pot 50, at least a portion of the upper surface 14 of the sheetof polymeric material 10 contacts the outer peripheral surface 56 of theflower pot 50 and is thereby bonded and held about the flower pot 50 viathe bonding material.

[0071] The bonding material 27 may cover a portion of the upper surface14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10, or the bonding material 27 mayentirely cover the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material10. The bonding material 27 may be disposed on the upper surface 14 ofthe sheet of polymeric material 10 in the form of a strip or in the formof spaced-apart spots. One method for disposing a bonding material 27 onthe sheet of polymeric material 10 is described in U.S. Pat. No.5,111,637, entitled “Method For Wrapping A Floral Grouping”, issued toWeder, et al. on May 12, 1992, which is expressly incorporated herein byreference.

[0072] The term “bonding material” when used herein can mean anadhesive, frequently a pressure sensitive adhesive, or a cohesive or anyadhesive/cohesive combination having adhesive qualities (i.e., qualitiesof adhesion or adhesion/cohesion, respectively) sufficient to cause theattachment of a portion of the sheet of polymeric material 10 to itself,to a floral grouping 34, or to a flower pot 50. Since the bondingmaterial 27 may comprise either an adhesive or an adhesive/cohesivecombination, it will be appreciated that both adhesives and cohesivesare known in the art, and both are commercially available. When thebonding material 27 is a cohesive, a similar cohesive material must beplaced on the adjacent surface for bondingly contacting and bondinglyengaging with the cohesive material.

[0073] The term “bonding material” also includes materials which areheat sealable and, in this instance, the adjacent portions of thematerial must be brought into contact and then heat must be applied toeffect the seal. The term “bonding material” also includes materialswhich are sonically sealable and vibratory sealable. The term “bondingmaterial” when used herein also means a heat sealing lacquer or hot meltmaterial which may be applied to the material and, in this instance,heat, sound waves, or vibrations, also must be applied to effect thesealing.

[0074] The term “bonding material” when used herein also means any typeof material or thing which can be used to effect the bonding orconnecting of the two adjacent portions of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 to effect the connection or bonding described herein. Theterm “bonding material” may also include ties, labels, bands, ribbons,strings, tapes (including single or double-sided adhesive tapes),staples or combinations thereof. Some of the bonding materials wouldsecure the ends of the material while other bonding materials may bindthe circumference of a cover, or a sleeve, or, alternatively and/or inaddition, the bonding materials would secure overlapping folds in thematerial and/or sleeve. Another way to secure the cover and/or sleeve isto heat seal the ends of the material to another portion of thematerial. One way to do this is to contact the ends with an iron ofsufficient heat to heat seal the material.

[0075] Alternatively, a cold seal adhesive may be utilized as thebonding material 27. The cold seal adhesive adheres only to a similarsubstrate, acting similarly as a cohesive, and binds only to itself. Thecold seal adhesive, since it bonds only to a similar substrate, does notcause a residue to build up on equipment, thereby both permitting muchmore rapid disposition and use of such equipment to form articles andreducing labor costs. Further, since no heat is required to effect theseal, the dwell time, that is, the time for the sheet of material toform and retain the shape of an article, such as a flower pot cover orflower pot, is reduced. A cold seal adhesive binds quickly and easilywith minimal pressure, and such a seal is not readily releasable. Thischaracteristic is different from, for example, a pressure sensitiveadhesive.

[0076] The term “bonding material” when used herein also means any heator chemically shrinkable material, and static electrical or otherelectrical materials, chemical welding materials, magnetic materials,mechanical or barb-type fastening materials or clamps, curl-typecharacteristics of the film or materials incorporated in material whichcan cause the material to take on certain shapes, cling films, slots,grooves, shrinkable materials and bands, curl materials, springs, andany type of welding method which may weld portions of the material toitself or to the pot, or to both the material itself and the pot.

Description of FIGS. 9-12

[0077] Referring now to FIGS. 10 and 11, a decorative preformed flowerpot cover 110 is illustrated constructed from a sheet of polymericmaterial having at least one surface thereof textured or modified toprovide the sheet of polymeric material with a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper. The polymeric materialhaving a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper is a flexible material such as the sheet of polymeric material 10having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper (FIG. 1), or a sheet of flexible material 112 having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper (FIG. 9A) or aflexible laminated sheet of material 112 a having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper (FIG. 9B). Inthe embodiment shown in FIG. 9A, the sheet of flexible material 112having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper used in the construction of the decorative preformed flower potcover 110 comprises a sheet of expanded core polymeric material 114having an upper surface 116, a lower surface 118 and a thickness in therange of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil, more desirably in the rangeof from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mil. The sheet of expanded corepolymeric material 114 is provided with a coating of an acrylic heatsealable lacquer 120 disposed on at least one of the upper and lowersurfaces 116 and 118 thereof. It should be understood, however, that thesheet of flexible material 112 is not limited to being the sheet ofexpanded core polymeric film 114 having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper; rather, the sheet offlexible material 112 can be any flexible polymeric material or flexiblelaminated material, such as the sheet of polymeric material 10 or thesheet of flexible laminated polymeric material 112 a, which can bemodified or textured so that at least one surface of such polymericmaterial or laminated material is provided with a finish or texturesimulating paper in appearance.

[0078] As previously stated, the modification of the polymeric materialor laminated polymeric material, such as the sheet of polymeric material10, the sheet of flexible laminated polymeric material 112 a, or thesheet of expanded core polymeric film 114 to provide the sheet offlexible material with the desired matte or textured finish, can beaccomplished by printing a desired pattern on the sheet of polymericmaterial and thereafter laminating a matte material, such as atranslucent polymeric film over the printed pattern. To further enhancethe texture or appearance of the sheet of polymeric material so that thesheet of polymeric material simulates the texture or appearance ofpaper, the matte material may or may not have a plurality of spatiallydisposed holes extending therethrough. A matte or textured finish canalso be produced by printing a sheet of polymeric material with a matted(i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the sheetof polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer,by embossing the sheet of polymeric material to provide an embossedpattern simulating the texture or appearance of paper, or by embossingand printing the sheet of polymeric material to provide embossed andprinted patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be inregistry, out of registry, or wherein a portion of the embossed andprinted patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed andprinted patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or texturedfinish capable a providing the sheet of flexible polymeric material witha texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of papercan be achieved by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or texturedchill roll to produce the expanded core polymeric material, or bylaminating a second sheet of material to the sheet of polymericmaterial, or by the use of selected pigments.

[0079] The sheet of flexible material 112 (FIG. 9A) having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper may vary incolor. Further, the sheet of flexible material 112 may be provided withother decorative patterns or designs in addition to the matting,texturing, flocking, application of lacquers or foamable inks, orembossing employed to impart a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper to the sheet of flexible material 112.

[0080] When the sheet of polymeric material, such as the sheet offlexible polymeric material 112 is formed into the decorative preformedflower pot cover 110, a plurality of overlapping folds 122 are formedand at least a portion of the overlapping folds 122 are connected toadjacently disposed portions of the decorative preformed flower potcover 110 via the acrylic heat sealable lacquer 120.

[0081] As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the decorative preformed pot cover110 has an upper end 125, a lower end 126, and an outer peripheralsurface 128. An opening 130 intersects the upper end 125, forming aninner peripheral surface 132 which defines and encompasses a retainingspace 133 within which a flower pot 134 containing a floral grouping 136may be disposed in a manner well known in the art.

[0082] In another embodiment, a sheet of flexible material 112 a (FIG.9B) is used in the construction of the decorative preformed flower potcover 110. The sheet of flexible material 112 a is a laminated materialwhich comprises a first sheet of material 114 a having an upper surface116 a and a lower surface 118 a, and a second sheet of material 120 a.At least one surface of the first sheet of material 114 a or the secondsheet of material 120 a is modified to provide the sheet of flexiblelaminated material 112 a with the desired texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper. The sheet of flexiblelaminated material 112 a having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper can be produced by laminating two or moresheets of polymeric film (such as two or more sheets of polypropylenefilm or a sheet of polypropylene film and a sheet of expanded corepolymeric film, such as expanded core polypropylene film), or bylaminating a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or an expandedcore polymeric film) with a sheet of metallized foil and the likewherein at least one surface of the sheet of flexible laminated material112 a is textured or modified to simulate paper in appearance.

[0083] The first sheet of material 114 a desirably has a thickness offrom about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil, and more desirably from about 0.6mil to about 1.25 mil, and the second sheet of material 120 a desirablyhas a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil, and moredesirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mil. The second sheet ormaterial 120 a can be laminated to the first sheet of material 114 awith a colored adhesive so as to impart a desired color to the laminatedsheet of flexible material 112 a. While the thickness of the sheet offlexible laminated material 112 a can vary widely and will generallydepend on the thickness of the first sheet of material 114 a and thethickness of the second sheet of material 120 a, desirable results canbe obtained where the sheet of flexible laminated material 112 a has athickness in the range of from about 1 mil to about 20 mil, and moredesirably from about 1.2 mil to about 2.5 mil.

[0084] As previously stated, the decorative preformed flower pot cover110 may be constructed of the sheet of polymeric material 10 having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper(FIG. 1), or of the sheet of flexible material 112 (FIG. 9A), or of thelaminated sheet of flexible material 112 a (FIG. 9B). The decorativepreformed flower pot cover 110 so formed will have a plurality ofoverlapping folds 122 formed therein, at least a portion thereof beingconnected. If desired, the decorative preformed flower pot cover 110 canbe formed of a plurality of sheets of the same and/or different types ofmaterial. The method and apparatus employed to form the decorativepreformed flower pot cover 110 having a texture or appearance of paperis substantially identical whether one uses one or more sheets ofpolymeric material 10 (FIG. 1), or one or more sheets of flexiblepolymeric material 112 (FIG. 9A), or one or more sheets of flexiblelaminated material 112 a (FIG. 9B), or a combination of such sheets ofmaterial. Thus, only the formation of the decorative preformed flowerpot cover 110 having a texture or appearance of paper using a sheet offlexible polymeric material 112 of FIG. 9A will be described in detailhereinafter.

[0085] The decorative preformed flower pot cover 110 may be formed usinga conventional mold system 140 comprising a male mold 142 and a femalemold 144 having a mold cavity 146 for matingly receiving the male mold142 (FIG. 12). The sheet of flexible polymeric material 112 having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper ispositioned between the male and female molds 142 and 144, respectively.Movement of the male mold 142 in the direction 148 and into the moldcavity 146 forces the sheet of flexible polymeric material 112 to bedisposed about the portion of the male mold 142 disposed in the moldcavity 146 of the female mold 144 and thereby forms the sheet offlexible polymeric material 112 into the decorative preformed decorativeflower pot cover 110 having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper (FIGS. 10 and 11). Further, in accordancewith the present invention, the decorative preformed flower pot cover110 constructed from the materials described herein above, may have abonding material disposed upon a portion thereof.

[0086] Methods for forming such preformed decorative pot covers are wellknown in the art. Two methods of forming such covers are described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 4,773,182 and 5,291,721, each of which is expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

Description of FIGS. 13-19

[0087] Shown in FIG. 13 is a decorative cover designated therein by thegeneral reference numeral 160 which comprises a flexible bag or sleeve162 of unitary construction having a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper in accordance with the presentinvention. The sleeve 162 may be used as a decorative cover 160 for afloral grouping or a flower pot. The sleeve 162 initially comprises aflexible flat collapsed piece of polymeric material which is openable inthe form of a tube or sleeve. Such sleeves are well known in the floralindustry. Further, in accordance with the present invention, thedecorative cover 160 can be constructed of the sheet of polymericmaterial 10 (FIG. 1), or the sheet of flexible polymeric material 112(FIG. 9A), or the sheet of laminated flexible polymeric material 112 a(FIG. 9B) whereby at least a portion of one surface of the sleeve 162,preferably an outer peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162, has beenmodified to provide the sleeve 162 with a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper, as previously describedherein.

[0088] The sleeve 162 has an upper end 166, a lower end 168 and theouter peripheral surface 164. The sleeve 162 may be tapered outwardlyfrom the lower end 168 toward a larger diameter at its upper end 166. Inits flattened state the sleeve 162 generally has an overall trapezoidalor modified trapezoidal shape, and when opened is substantiallyfrusto-conical in configuration. It will be appreciated, however, thatthe sleeve 162 may comprise variations on the aforementioned shapes ormay comprise significantly altered shapes such as square or rectangular,wherein the sleeve 162 when opened has a cylindrical form, as long asthe sleeve 162 functions in accordance with the present invention in themanner described herein. The sleeve 162 (or any other sleeve disclosedherein) may have an angular or contoured shape.

[0089] The sleeve 162 has an opening 170 at the upper end 166 and may beopen at the lower end 168, or closed with a bottom at the lower end 168.The sleeve 162 also has an inner peripheral surface 172 which, when thesleeve 162 is opened, defines and encompasses an inner retaining space174. When the lower end 168 of the sleeve 162 has a closed lower end168, a portion of the lower end 168 may be inwardly folded to form oneor more gussets (not shown) for allowing the lower portion of the innerretaining space 174 to be expandable, for example, for receiving thecircular bottom of a pot or growing medium.

[0090] The sleeve 162 is generally frusto-conically shaped, but thesleeve 162 may be, by way of example but not by way of limitation,cylindrical, frusto-conical, a combination of both frusto-conical andcylindrical, or any other shape, as long as the sleeve 162 functions asdescribed herein as noted above. Further, the sleeve 162 may compriseany shape, whether geometric, non-geometric, asymmetrical and/orfanciful as long as it functions in accordance with the presentinvention. The sleeve 162 may also be equipped with drain holes (ifhaving a closed bottom) or side ventilation holes (not shown), or can bemade from gas permeable or impermeable materials.

[0091] The material from which the sleeve 162 is constructed is the sameas previously described above for the sheet of polymeric material 10having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper, or the sheet of flexible polymeric material 112 or 112 a having atexture or appearance simulating paper. Any thickness of polymericmaterial may be utilized in accordance with the present invention aslong as the sleeve 162 may be formed as described herein, is providedwith a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper, and as long as the formed sleeve 162 may contain at least aportion of a flower pot or a floral grouping, as described herein.Additionally, an insulating material such as bubble film, preferable asone of two or more layers, can be utilized in order to provideadditional protection for the item, such as a floral grouping, containedtherein.

[0092] In FIG. 14 the sleeve 162 is illustrated having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper provided on theouter peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162. A floral grouping 176 isdisposed within the inner retaining space 174 of the sleeve 162.Generally, an upper or bloom portion 178 of the floral grouping 176 isexposed near the opening 170 of the sleeve 162 and a lower or stemportion 180 of the floral grouping 176 is exposed near the lower end 168of the sleeve 162. Either end of the sleeve 162 may be closed about thefloral grouping 176. Generally, a portion of the sleeve 162 is tightenedabout a portion of the stem portion 180 of the floral grouping 176 forholding the decorative cover 160 about the floral grouping 176. Forexample, the sleeve 162 may be held by a tie 182 tied about the sleeve162 such as is shown in FIG. 14. Other methods for binding the sleeve162 about the floral grouping 176 may be employed such as the bondingmaterials described elsewhere herein. For example, as shown in FIG. 15,a decorative cover 160 a is shown which comprises a sleeve 162 a havinga texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paperand a cinching tab 184 having a bonding material 186 disposed upon asurface thereof. The cinching tab 184 can be used to gather portions ofthe sleeve 162 a together about the stem portion 180 of the floralgrouping 176 as shown in FIG. 16 for holding the sleeve 162 a tightlyabout the floral grouping 176.

[0093] Similarly, it may generally be desired to use the sleeve 162 as adecorative cover for a flower pot, as will be described in furtherdetail below. The flower pot will generally contain a botanical item orplant. The flower pot can be deposited into the open sleeve 162 in amanner well known in the art, such as manually wherein the sleeve 162 isopened by hand and the flower pot deposited therein.

[0094] As noted above, a bonding material may be disposed on a portionof the sleeve 162 or any sleeve described herein to assist in holdingthe sleeve 162 to the flower pot when the flower pot is disposed withinthe sleeve 162 or to assist in closing the upper end 166 of the sleeve162 or adhering the sleeve 162 to the flower pot after the flower pothas been disposed therein, as will be discussed in further detail below.

[0095] It will be understood that the bonding material, if present, maybe disposed as a strip or block on a surface of the sleeve 162. Thebonding material may also be disposed upon either the outer peripheralsurface 164 or the inner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162, aswell as upon the flower pot. Further, the bonding material may bedisposed as spots of bonding material, or in any other geometric,non-geometric, asymmetric, or fanciful form, and in any pattern,including covering either the entire inner peripheral surface 172 and/orouter peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162 and/or the flower pot.The bonding material may be covered by a cover or release strip whichcan be removed prior to the use of the sleeve 162 or flower pot. Thebonding material can be applied by methods known to those of ordinaryskill in their art. One method for disposing a bonding material, in thiscase an adhesive, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,637, issued toWeder et al. on May 12, 1993, which is hereby incorporated herein byreference.

[0096] As noted above, a bonding material may be disposed on at least aportion of the inner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162, or,alternatively, the bonding material may be disposed on the outerperipheral surface of a flower pot contained within the sleeve 162,while the sleeve 162 may be free of the bonding material. In a furtheralternative, the bonding material may be disposed both on at least aportion of the flower pot as well as upon at least a portion of theinner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162. In addition, a portionof the bonding material may also be disposed on the outer peripheralsurface 164 of the sleeve 162 as well. It will be understood that thebonding material may be disposed in a solid section of bonding material.The bonding material, when present, is disposed on the sleeve 162 and/orflower pot by any method known in the art.

[0097] Certain versions of sleeves described herein may be used incombination with a preformed pot cover. For example, a preformed potcover may be applied to the pot, then the covered pot wrapped ordisposed within a sleeve. Either the cover or the sleeve, or both, havea texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper.Examples of sleeves which may be used in this invention are shown in thespecification of U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,979, issued to Weder on May 6,1997, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. Equipment and devices for forming sleeves are commerciallyavailable, and well known in the art.

[0098] Shown in FIGS. 17 and 18 is another embodiment of a decorativecover 160 b comprising a sleeve 162 b having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper constructed from the sheetof polymeric material 10, or the sheet of flexible polymeric material112 or 112 a in accordance with the present invention and designated bythe general reference numeral 162 b. The sleeve 162 b has a “detaching”element in predetermined areas for detaching a portion of the sleeve 162b. The sleeve 162 b generally initially comprises a flexible flatcollapsed piece of material which is openable in the form of a tube orsleeve. The sleeve 162 b is constructed of the same material and in thesame way as the sleeve 162 described previously herein and may bedescribed exactly the same as the sleeve 162 described herein except forthe additional elements described hereinafter.

[0099] The sleeve 162 b has an upper end 166 b, a lower end 168 b, andan outer peripheral surface 164 b. The sleeve 162 b has an opening 170 bat the upper end 166 b thereof, and the sleeve 162 b may be open at thelower end 168 b or closed with a bottom at the lower end 168 b. In aflattened state, the sleeve 162 b has a first side 171 and a second side173. The sleeve 162 b also has an inner peripheral surface 172 b which,when the sleeve 162 b is opened, defines and encompasses an innerretaining space 174 b as shown in FIG. 18. When the lower end 168 b ofthe sleeve 162 b has a closed bottom, a portion of the lower end 168 bmay be inwardly folded to form one or more gussets (not shown) forpermitting a circular bottom of an object such as a flower pot 187 to bedisposed in the inner retaining space 174 b of the lower end 168 b ofthe sleeve 162 b.

[0100] As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the sleeve 162 b is demarcated intoan upper portion 188 and a lower portion 190. The lower portion 190 ofthe sleeve 162 b is generally sized to contain the flower pot 187. Theupper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b is sized to substantially surroundand encompass a plant 192 contained in the flower pot 187 disposedwithin the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b. The sleeve 162 b isdemarcated into the upper portion 188 and the lower portion 190 by adetaching element 194 for enabling the detachment of the upper portion188 of the sleeve 162 b from the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b.In the present version, the detaching element 194 is a plurality ofgenerally laterally-oriented or alternating diagonally-orientedperforations which extend circumferentially across the outer peripheralsurface 164 b of the sleeve 162 b from the first side 171 to the secondside 173.

[0101] In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the lower portion 190of the sleeve 162 b further comprises a base portion 196 and a skirtportion 198. The base portion 196 of the lower portion 190 of the sleeve162 b comprises that part of the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 bwhich, when the flower pot 187 is placed into the lower portion 190 ofthe sleeve 162 b, has an inner peripheral surface 172 b which issubstantially adjacent to and surrounds an outer peripheral surface 199of the flower pot 187. The skirt portion 198 of the lower portion 190 ofthe sleeve 162 b comprises that part of the lower portion 190 of thesleeve 162 b which extends beyond an open upper end 201 of the flowerpot 187 and adjacent at least a portion of the plant 192 containedwithin the flower pot 187 and which is left to freely extend at anangle, inwardly or outwardly, from the base portion 196 when the upperportion 188 of the sleeve 162 b is detached from the lower portion 190of the sleeve 162 b by actuation of the detaching element 194.

[0102] In the intact sleeve 162 b, the skirt portion 198 of the sleeve162 b comprises an upper peripheral edge congruent with the detachingelement 194 which is connected to a lower peripheral edge, alsocongruent with the detaching element 194, of the upper portion 188 ofthe sleeve 162 b. In FIGS. 17 and 18, the upper peripheral edge of theskirt portion 198 of the sleeve 162 b is congruent with a series ofalternating diagonally-oriented lines of perforations which togetherform a zig-zag and comprise the detaching element 194. The upper portion188 of the sleeve 162 b may also have an additional detaching element200 indicated as a plurality of vertical perforations for facilitatingremoval of the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b and which aredisposed more or less vertically therein extending between the detachingelement 194 of the sleeve 162 b and the upper end 166 b of the sleeve162 b.

[0103] The upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b is thereby separablefrom the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b by tearing the upperportion 188 along both the detaching element 200 and the detachingelement 194, thereby separating the upper portion 188 from the lowerportion 190 of the sleeve 162 b. The lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b remains disposed as the base portion 196 about the flower pot 187 andas the skirt portion 198 about the plant 192 forming a decorative cover202 as shown in FIG. 19 which substantially surrounds and encompassesthe flower pot 187 and the plant 192 contained therein. An outerperipheral surface 164 b of the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b,for example, the base and skirt portions 196 and 198, may be modified toprovide the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b with a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper, while theupper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b is left unmodified or is printedwith a design; or both the upper portion 188 and the lower portion 190of the sleeve 162 b may be provided with a modified or textured surfaceso that both the upper portion 188 and the lower portion 190 of thesleeve 162 b is provided with a texture or appearance simulating paper.When the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b is detached, the lowerportion 190 of the sleeve 162 b remains disposed about the flower pot187 and thereby forms a decorative cover 202 about the flower pot 187which has the appearance of paper.

[0104] “Detaching element” as used herein, means any element, orcombination of elements, or features, such as, but not by way oflimitation, perforations, tear strips, zippers, and any other devices orelements of this nature known in the art, or any combination thereof.Therefore, while perforations are shown and described in detail herein,it will be understood that tear strips, zippers, or any other “detachingelements” known in the art, or any combination thereof, could besubstituted therefor and/or used therewith.

[0105] In a general method of use of sleeve 162 b as a decorative cover202 for a flower pot, an operator provides the sleeve 162 b, and theflower pot 187 having a plant 192 disposed in a growing medium 203contained within the flower pot 187. The operator then disposes theflower pot 187 having the plant 192 contained therein into the sleeve162 b by opening the sleeve 162 b at the upper end 166 b thereof andassuring both that the opening 170 b therein is in an open condition,and that the inner peripheral surface 172 b of the sleeve 162 b issomewhat expanded outward as well, as shown in FIG. 18. The operatorthen manually or automatically disposes the flower pot 187 into theopening 170 b in the sleeve 162 b, the flower pot 187 being disposedgenerally through the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162 b intogenerally the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b, the flower pot 187remaining in the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162 b, permitting thesleeve 162 b to substantially surround and tightly encompass the flowerpot 187. It will be understood that alternatively, the sleeve 162 b maybe provided with an extension (not shown), and the sleeve 162 b may bedisposed on rods or wickets, and the flower pot 187 may then be disposedin the sleeve 162 b either before or after the sleeve 162 b has beenremoved from the wickets.

Description of FIGS. 20A-20C

[0106] Referring now to FIG. 20A, designated generally by the referencenumeral 210 is a polymeric ribbon material having a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper for formingdecorative bows and for wrapping items. That is, at least one surface ofa web of polymeric material (not shown) is modified to provide a matteor textured finish 212 simulating the appearance of paper. Themodification of the web of polymeric material (not shown) to provide thepolymeric ribbon material 210 with a matte or textured finish 212simulating paper can be accomplished in several ways. For example, thepolymeric ribbon material 210 having the matte or textured finish 212can be produced by printing a web of polymeric material with a matted(i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the sheetof polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer,by embossing the sheet of polymeric material to provide an embossedpattern simulating the texture or appearance of paper, or by flockingthe sheet of polymeric material, or by application of a foamable lacqueror foamable ink to the sheet of polymeric material, or by embossing andprinting the sheet of polymeric material to provide embossed and printedpatterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry,out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossed and printedpatterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printedpatterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish212 capable of providing the sheet of polymeric material with a textureor appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper can beachieved by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chillroll. Thereafter, the web of material having a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper can be cut in aconventional manner to provide the polymeric ribbon material 210 havinga texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper.

[0107] Any polymeric material capable of being textured or otherwisemodified to provide the polymeric material with a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper can be employed in theformulation of the polymeric ribbon material 210. For example, thepolymeric material employed to produce the polymeric ribbon material 210can be polypropylene film having a thickness of from about 0.1 mil toabout 30 mil, and more desirably of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil,or an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness of from about 0.5mil to about 10 mil.

[0108] Referring now to FIG. 20B, designated generally by the referencenumeral 220 is another embodiment of a polymeric ribbon material forforming decorative bows and for wrapping items. The polymeric ribbonmaterial 220 is a laminated material comprising a first web or sheet ofmaterial 222 having a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 miland more desirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mil, and a secondweb or sheet of material 224 having a thickness of from about 0.5 mil toabout 10 mil, and more desirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.The laminated material having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper can be produced by laminating two or moresheets of polymeric film (such as two or more sheets of polypropylenefilm or a sheet of polypropylene film and a sheet of expanded corepolymeric film, such as expanded core polypropylene film), or bylaminating a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or an expandedcore polymeric film) with a sheet of metallized foil and the likewherein at least one surface of the laminated material is textured ormodified to simulate the texture or appearance of paper. The second webor sheet of material 224 is desirably laminated to the first web orsheet of material 222 with a colored adhesive so as to impart a desiredcolor to the polymeric ribbon material 220. If desired the polymericribbon material 220 may be treated or otherwise processed to provide thepolymeric ribbon material 220 with a matte or textured finish 226simulating paper in appearance so that the polymeric ribbon material 220has an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper similar to the polymeric ribbon material 210 hereinbeforedescribed with reference to FIG. 20A. That is, a matte or texturedfinish 226 simulating paper in texture or appearance can be printed onthe first web or sheet of material 222, and thereafter the second web orsheet of material 224 (which in this case is desirably a matte materialof translucent polymeric film) is laminated to the first web or sheet ofmaterial 222 to provide the polymeric ribbon material 220 with a textureor appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper. To furtherenhance the texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearanceof paper of the polymeric ribbon material 220, the second web or sheetof material 224 may or may not have a plurality of spatially disposedholes extending therethrough. The matte or textured finish 226 can beproduced by printing at least one of the first and second webs or sheetsof material 222 and 224 with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, bylacquering at least one surface of at least one of the first and secondwebs or sheets of material 222 and 224 with a dull finish lacquer or amatting lacquer, by flocking at least one of the first and second websor sheets of material 222 and 224, by application of a foamable lacqueror foamable ink to at least one of the first and second webs or sheetsof material 222 and 224, by embossing at least one of the first andsecond webs or sheets of material 222 and 224 to provide an embossedpattern simulating the texture or appearance of paper, or by embossingand printing at least one of the first and second webs or sheets ofmaterial 222 and 224 to provide embossed and printed patterns whereinthe embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry orwherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registryand a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry.In addition, a matte or textured finish 226 capable a providing thepolymeric ribbon material 200 with a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper can be achieved by extruding theresin used to produce one of the first and second webs or sheets ofmaterial 222 and 224 onto a matted or textured chill roll.

[0109] Referring now to FIG. 20C, designated generally by the referencenumeral 230 is another embodiment of a polymeric ribbon material forforming decorative bows and for wrapping items. The polymeric ribbonmaterial 230 comprises a polymeric film 232 having an upper surface 234,and a lower surface 236. An acrylic heat sealable lacquer 238 canapplied to at least one of the upper and lower surfaces 234 and 236 ofthe polymeric film 232, such as the lower surface 236 of the polymericfilm 232, and the upper surface 234 of the polymeric film 232 isdesirably modified to provide the polymeric ribbon material 230 with amatte or textured finish 239 simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper. The modification of the polymeric film 232 to provide thepolymeric ribbon material 230 with a texture or appearance simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper can be accomplished in several ways.For example, the polymeric ribbon material 230 having the matte ortextured finish 239 can be produced by printing the polymeric film 232with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface234 or 236 of the polymeric film 232 with a dull finish lacquer or amatting lacquer, by flocking the polymeric film 232, by application of afoamable lacquer or foamable ink to the polymeric film 232, by embossingthe polymeric film 232 to provide an embossed pattern simulating thetexture or appearance of paper, or by embossing and printing thepolymeric film 232 to provide embossed and printed patterns wherein theembossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry orwherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registryand a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry.In addition, a matte or textured finish 239 capable of providing thepolymeric film 232 with a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper can be achieved by extruding a polymeric resinonto a matted or textured chill roll. Thereafter, the polymeric film 232having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper can be cut in a conventional manner to provide the polymericribbon material 230.

[0110] Any polymeric film capable of being textured or otherwisemodified to provide the polymeric film 232 with a texture or appearancesimulating the texture or appearance of paper can be employed in theformulation of the polymeric ribbon material 230. For example, thepolymeric film 232 employed to produce the polymeric ribbon material 230can be polypropylene film having a thickness of from about 0.1 mil toabout 30 mil, and more desirably of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil,or an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness of from about 0.6mil to about 10 mil.

Description of FIGS. 21-33

[0111] Referring now to FIG. 21, designated generally by the referencenumeral 240 is a system for producing decorative grass 242 having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper inaccordance with the present invention. That is, at least one of an uppersurface 243 or a lower surface 245 of a sheet or web of polymericmaterial 244 is modified with a matte or textured finish to provide aweb of polymeric material 244 having an appearance or texture simulatingthe appearance or texture of paper as hereinbefore described. Thus, thedecorative grass 242 produced from the web of polymeric material 244having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper will also have a matte or textured finish 246 (FIGS. 22A) whichprovides the decorative grass 242 produced from a polymeric material orlaminated polymeric material with paper-like appearance and/or texture.

[0112] Any polymeric material capable of being textured or otherwisemodified to provide the polymeric material with a texture and/orappearance of paper can be employed to produce the decorative grass 242having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper. For example, the polymeric material employed to produce the webof polymeric material 244 having an appearance or texture simulating theappearance or texture of paper can be polypropylene film having athickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mil, and more desirably offrom about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil, or an expanded core polymeric filmhaving a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil, or laminatedmaterial having a thickness of from about 1 mil to about 20 mil. Thelaminated materials which can be used to produce the web of polymericmaterial 244 having an appearance or texture simulating the appearanceor texture of paper can be formed by laminating two or more webs ofpolymeric film (such as two or more webs of polypropylene film or a webof polypropylene film and a web of expanded core polymeric film, such asexpanded core polypropylene film), or by laminating a polymeric film(such as polypropylene film or an expanded core polymeric film such asexpanded core polypropylene film) with a metallized foil and the like.The only requirement in using a laminated material to produce the web ofpolymeric material 244 having an appearance or texture simulating theappearance or texture of paper is that at least one surface of thelaminated material be capable of being textured or modified to providethe laminated material with at least one surface having a paper-liketexture and/or appearance.

[0113] The modification of the web of polymeric material 244 to providethe matte or textured finish 246 can be accomplished in several ways.For example, the web of polymeric material 244 having the matte ortextured finish 246 which provides the web of polymeric material 244with the appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper can be produced by printing a web of polymeric material 244 with amatted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one of the upperand lower surfaces 243 and 245, respectively, of the web of polymericmaterial 244 with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, byembossing the web of polymeric material 244 to provide an embossedpattern simulating the texture and/or appearance of paper, or byflocking the web of polymeric material 244, or by application of afoamable lacquer or foamable ink to the web of polymeric material 244,or by embossing and printing the web of polymeric material 244 toprovide embossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printedpatterns may be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of theembossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of theembossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matteor textured finish 246 capable of providing the web of polymericmaterial 244 with a paper-like texture and/or appearance can be achievedby extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll.

[0114] Referring again to FIG. 21, a roll 248 of the web of polymericmaterial 244 having a matte or textured finish 246 simulating thetexture or appearance of paper is supported on a mandrel 250 having abrake assembly 252 operably connected thereto so that the web ofpolymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish 246 simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper can be controllably withdrawn fromthe roll 248. The web of polymeric material 244 having a matte ortextured finish 246 simulating the texture or appearance of paper ispassed through a pair of tension or nip rollers 254 and 256 and into aslitter or shredder unit 258 where the web of polymeric material 244having a matte or textured finish 246 simulating the texture orappearance of paper is slit to provide a slit web of polymeric material260 having a plurality of strips of predetermined width which have amatte or textured finish 246 simulating the texture or appearance ofpaper. The slitting of the web of polymeric material 244 having a matteor textured finish 246 simulating the texture or appearance of paper toproduce the slit web of polymeric material 244 having a plurality ofstrips of predetermined width which have a matte or textured finish 246simulating the texture or appearance of paper can be accomplished usingany well known method and device. Such common methods of slitting theweb of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish 246simulating the texture or appearance of paper include: (a) slitting theweb of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish 246simulating the texture or appearance of paper to produce side-by-sidestrips of material wherein the longer dimension of the strips is in thedirection of travel of the web of polymeric material 244 having a matteor textured finish 246 simulating the texture or appearance of paper,i.e. the machine direction; or (b) slitting the web of polymericmaterial 244 having a matte or textured finish 246 simulating thetexture or appearance of paper so that the longer dimension of thestrips of material are oblique to the direction of travel of the web ofpolymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish 246 simulatingthe texture or appearance of paper, i.e. obliquely to the machinedirection.

[0115] The slit web of polymeric material 260 having a plurality ofstrips of predetermined width which have a matte or textured finish 246simulating the texture or appearance of paper is then passed through acutting unit 262 where the strips of the slit web of polymeric material260 are cut into segments to form the decorative grass 242 having atleast one matted or textured surface 246 which provides the decorativegrass 242 with a texture and/or appearance simulating the texture and/orappearance of paper. A segment 264 of the decorative grass 242 having atleast one matted or textured surface 246 which provides the decorativegrass 242 with a paper-like texture and/or appearance is illustrated inFIG. 22A.

[0116] Any conventional device and method can be employed as the slitteror shredder unit 258 for slitting of the web of polymeric material 244to produce the slit web of polymeric material 260 having a plurality ofstrips of predetermined width and as the cutting unit 262 for cuttingthe strips of the slit web of polymeric material 260 to form thedecorative grass 242 having a paper-like texture and/or appearance.Examples of conventional devices which can be used as the slitter orshredder unit 258 and/or as the cutting unit 262 are rotary knives,reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, airjet cutting and the like.

[0117] The decorative grass 242 having an appearance or texturesimulating the appearance or texture of paper produced by cutting thestrips of the slit web of polymeric material 260 having a matted ortextured finish 246 which simulates the texture and/or appearance ofpaper can then be conveyed to a storage area (not shown) which may be inthe form of a suitable bin, or the decorative grass 242 having anappearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper maybe conveyed to a packaging machine, or conveyed to a baling machine forbaling prior to storage. As other alternatives, the decorative grass 242having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper may be placed into boxes or cartons, subjected to furtherprocessing immediately or held for subsequent processing.

[0118] Referring now to FIG. 22B, designated generally by the referencenumeral 266, is a segment of a decorative grass 268 having an appearanceor texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper produced fromthe sheet of flexible laminated material 112 a wherein both the upperand lower surfaces 116 a and 118 a of the sheet of flexible laminatedmaterial 112 a is provided with a matted or textured finish 270simulating the texture or appearance of paper so that the decorativegrass 268 produced from the sheet of flexible laminated material 112 ais also provided with a matte or textured finish 270 simulating thetexture or appearance of paper on an upper surface 272 and a lowersurface 274 of the segments of the decorative grass 268, such as thesegment 266 illustrated in FIG. 22B. However, it should be understoodthat the decorative grass 268 having an appearance or texture simulatingthe appearance or texture of paper can be produced from any laminatedmaterial where at least one surface of the laminated material ismodified, such as by matting or texturing, to provide the laminatedmaterial with an appearance simulating the appearance of paper.

[0119] The decorative grasses having an appearance or texture simulatingthe appearance or texture of paper prepared in accordance with thepresent invention, such as the decorative grass 242 (FIG. 22A) and thedecorative grass 268 (FIG. 22B) can also be provided with various typesof curl configurations, can be crimped or otherwise modified. That is,in addition to providing the webs of material from which the decorativegrasses are produced with a matted or textured surface which simulatespaper in texture and/or appearance, various types of curls, crimps andcombinations thereof can be imparted to the webs of material prior toslitting the webs of material to produce slit webs of material, or tothe slit web of material prior to cutting the slit webs of material toproduce the decorative grasses having an appearance or texturesimulating the appearance or texture of paper. Any method or apparatuscapable of imparting the desired curl and/or crimp to the webs ofmaterial so that the decorative grasses produced from such webs ofmaterial possess a curl and/or crimped configuration, as well as havingan appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper,can be employed to impart a curl and/or crimp to the webs of material.Examples of various methods and apparatus which may be used to impartcurl configurations to the webs of material so that the decorativegrasses produced from such webs of material possess a curlconfiguration, as well as having an appearance or texture simulating theappearance or texture of paper, are described in co-pending U.S. patentapplication U.S. Ser. No. 09/586,901, entitled “Method And Apparatus ForMaking Curled Decorative Grass” which is hereby expressly incorporatedherein by reference. Crimping machines capable of imparting the desiredcrimp to the webs of material so that the decorative grasses producedfrom such webs of material possess a crimped configuration, as well ashaving an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture ofpaper are well known and commercially available. One method forimparting a crimp configuration to the webs of material so that thedecorative grasses produced from such webs of material possess a crimpedconfiguration, as well as having an appearance or texture simulating theappearance or texture of paper, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,286,entitled “Method Of Forming Curled Or Crimped Decorative Elements HavingAn Optical Effect” issued to Weder on Apr. 6, 1999, which is herebyexpressly incorporated herein by reference.

[0120] Shown in FIGS. 23-33 are methods of providing curls or crimps toa sheet or web of material having a texture or appearance simulating thetexture or appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surfacethereof from which curled or crimped decorative grasses similar to thedecorative grasses 242 and 268 described in detail herein before withreference to FIGS. 22A and 22B may be formed. FIGS. 23-25 illustrate amethod of providing a curl to a sheet or web of laminated material 280by prestretching one of the sheets or webs of material from which thesheet or web of material is formed prior to lamination to a second sheetor web of material.

[0121] The sheet or web of laminated material 280 is formed of a firstsheet or web of material 282 and a second sheet or web of material 284.The sheet or web of laminated material 280 has an upper surface 286, alower surface 288, a length 290 and a width 292. The sheet or web oflaminated material 280 may be substantially similar to and formed fromthe same materials as the sheet of flexible laminated material 112 adescribed in detail herein before with reference to FIG. 9B, and may beprovided with a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper on at least a portion of one of the upper and lowersurfaces 286 and 288 thereof, as described in detail herein above.

[0122] As shown in FIGS. 24 and 25, the first sheet or web of material282 of the sheet or web of laminated material 280 is provided with anupper surface 294, a lower surface 296, a length 298 and a width 300.The second sheet or web of material 284 of the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 280 is provided with an upper surface 302, a lower surface 304,a length 306 and a width 308. The first sheet or web of material 282 isprovided with a dimension which is less than the associated dimension ofthe second sheet or web of material 284, and the first sheet or web ofmaterial 282 is thus stretched in one dimension to provide suchdimension with the same size as the associated dimension of the secondsheet or web of material 284, and then the two sheets or webs ofmaterial 282 and 284 are laminated together. For example, as shown inFIG. 24, the length 298 of the first sheet or web of material 282 isless than the length 306 of the second sheet or web of material 284, andas shown in FIG. 25, the first sheet or web of material 282 is stretchedlengthwise so that the length 298 thereof is the same as the length 306of the second sheet or web of material 284. Following stretching of thefirst sheet or web of material 282, the two sheets or webs of material282 and 284 are laminated together to form the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 280, substantially as shown in FIG. 23. Following lamination,the length 298 of the first sheet or web of material 282 contracts backto its original size, thereby causing a curl to be formed in the length290 of the sheet or web of laminated material 280, as shown in FIG. 23.When the sheet or web of laminated material 280 is cut in the directionof stretch, decorative grass 310 formed therefrom will possess a torsionspring type curl, as illustrated in FIG. 26A. When the sheet or web oflaminated material 280 is cut at an angle to the direction of stretch,decorative grass 310 a formed therefrom will possess a helical springtype curl, as illustrated in FIG. 26B. Both decorative grass 310 and 310a are also provided with a texture or appearance simulating the textureor appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.Such methods of providing a preset curl in a laminated material aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,891,286, entitled “METHODS OF FORMINGCURLED OR CRIMPED DECORATIVE ELEMENTS HAVING AN OPTICAL EFFECT”, issuedto Weder on Apr. 6, 1999, the Specification of which is hereby expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

[0123] Shown in FIG. 27 is a curled sheet or web of laminated material112 a′ from which curled decorative grass may be produced in accordancewith the present invention. The curled sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a′ is formed by curling the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a of FIG. 9B. The curled configuration may be provided byany method known in the art. For example, methods and apparatus forproviding a sheet of material with a curl are described in detail inU.S. Pat. No. 5,891,286, which has previously been incorporated hereinby reference. However, the present invention is not limited to the useof such methods and apparatus, and any method known in the art forproviding a curl to a sheet or web of material may be utilized inaccordance with the present invention.

[0124] Following production of the curled sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a′, such sheet or web of laminated material 112 a′ may becut or shredded as described herein before to provide curled strands ofdecorative grass, wherein such curled strands of decorative grass aresubstantially similar to the curled strands of decorative grass 310 and310 a illustrated in FIGS. 26A and 26B, depending on the direction atwhich the curled sheet or web of laminated material 112 a′ is cut.

[0125] Shown in FIG. 28 is a crimped sheet or web of laminated material112 a′ from which crimped decorative grass may be produced in accordancewith the present invention. The crimped sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a″ is formed by crimping the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a of FIG. 9B. The crimped configuration may be provided byany method known in the art. For example, methods and apparatus forproviding a sheet of material with a crimp are described in detail inU.S. Pat. No. 5,891,286, which has previously been incorporated hereinby reference. However, the present invention is not limited to the useof such methods and apparatus, and any method known in the art forproviding a crimp to a sheet or web of material may be utilized inaccordance with the present invention.

[0126] Following production of the crimped sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 112 a″, such sheet or web of laminated material 112 a″ may becut or shredded as described herein before to provide strands ofdecorative grass 312 having a crimped configuration, substantially asshown in FIG. 29.

[0127] While the sheet or web of laminated material 112 a used in themethods described herein before with reference to FIGS. 27 and 28 islaminated, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited tothe use of a laminated material in such a method. That is, a sheet orweb of unlaminated material comprising a single sheet or web ofmaterial, such as the sheet of material 10, may be utilized in a similarfashion as described hereinbefore with reference to FIGS. 27 and 28 suchthat the sheet or web of unlaminated material is curled or crimped andthen cut or shredded to provide strands of decorative grass having acurled or crimped configuration.

[0128] In addition, the invention also includes a sheet or web ofunlaminated material which comprises two or more sheets or webs ofmaterial which are unconnected. In this manner, the decorative grass isa mixture or two or more materials which are comingled and have the samecrimped or curled configuration. A sheet or web of material having atexture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper onat least one surface thereof may be utilized with a sheet or web ofmaterial lacking such appearance in this manner.

[0129] Shown in FIG. 30 is a sheet or web of laminated material 320 fromwhich decorative grass can be produced in accordance with the presentinvention. The sheet or web of laminated material 320 has an uppersurface 322, a lower surface 324, a length 326 and a width 328. At leasta portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces 322 and 324 of thesheet or web of laminated material 320 is provided with a texture orappearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper.

[0130] The sheet or web of laminated material 320 comprises a firstsheet or web of material 330 and a second sheet or web of material 332.The second sheet or web of material 332 is provided with a substantiallyflat configuration. The first and second sheets or webs of material 330and 332 may be constructed of the same materials and in the same fashionas the first and second sheets of material 114 a and 120 a of the sheetof flexible laminated material 112 a, except that the first sheet or webof material 330 is constructed of a material which is provided with asubstantially flat configuration, but which contracts or shrinks whenexposed to a sufficient level of heat, while the second sheet or web ofmaterial 332 does not react by shrinking when exposed to the sametemperature or sufficient level of heat as the first sheet or web ofmaterial 330. That is, the first sheet or web of material 330 shrinks ata lower temperature than the second sheet or web of material 332, or thefirst and second sheets or webs of material 330 and 332 both shrink inresponse to heat but at differential rates in the same temperaturerange. In this manner, the sheet or web of laminated material 320 may beshredded or cut to produce decorative grass wherein the individualstrands of decorative grass are provided with a substantially linear,flat configuration. The strands of decorative grass may be packaged,stored, shipped and displayed in such a substantially linear, flatconfiguration, allowing the consumer to curl the decorative grass at thepoint of use by heating the strands of decorative grass, such as byexposure of the decorative grass to a hair dryer or an oven, or byplacing between two sheets of cardboard in a microwave oven (so as toabsorb the microwave energy). In this manner, the substantially flat,individual strands of decorative grass are more easily separated by theconsumer than strands of decorative grass having curled or crimpedconfigurations which are intertwined in a cohesive mass. In addition,such method allows for easy removal of a portion of the stands ofdecorative grass and easy storage of the remaining portion of thedecorative grass for future use. However, it is to be understood thatthe present invention is not limited to curling the decorative grass atthe point of sale or the point of use, and decorative grass formed asdescribed above may be curled at the point of production, if desired.

[0131] Optionally, the sheet or web of laminated material 320 may becurled by exposure to heat prior to cutting or shredding to formdecorative grass. Shown in FIG. 31 is the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 320 which has been exposed to heat, and therefore a curl hasbeen formed along the length 326 thereof. While it is described andillustrated herein that the sheet or web of laminated material 320, andtherefore the strands of decorative grass formed therefrom, is providedwith a curl along the length 326 thereof, it is to be understood thatthe sheet or web of laminated material 320, as well as the strands ofdecorative grass formed therefrom, may be provided with a curl along thewidth 328 thereof, or the curl may be disposed diagonally and span boththe length 326 and width 328 thereof. The decorative grass formed fromthe sheet or web of laminated material 320 will have a configurationsubstantially similar to the configuration of the decorative grass 310and 310 a described herein before with reference to FIGS. 26A and 26B.

[0132] Other methods of providing the second sheet or web of materialwith a substantially flat configuration which can be activated to form acurled or crimped configuration may be utilized. Shown in FIG. 32 is asheet or web of laminated material 340 from which decorative grass canbe produced in accordance with the present invention. The sheet or webof laminated material 340 has an upper surface 342, a lower surface 344,a length 346 and a width 348. At least a portion of one of the upper andlower surfaces 342 and 344 of the sheet or web of laminated material 340is provided with a texture or appearance simulating the texture orappearance of paper.

[0133] The sheet or web of laminated material 340 comprises a firstsheet or web of material 350 and a second sheet or web of material 352laminated to the first sheet or web of material 350, wherein both thefirst and second sheets or webs of material 350 and 352 are providedwith a substantially flat configuration. The first and second sheets orwebs of material 350 and 352 may be constructed of the same materialsand in the same fashion as the first and second sheets of material 114 aand 120 a of the sheet or flexible laminated material 112 a, except thatthe second sheet or web of material 352 contains a hygroscopic agentwhich is activated by exposure to moisture such that the hygroscopicagent expands upon exposure to moisture and thereby imparts a curl tothe sheet or web of laminated material 340 formed therefrom and/or tothe strands of decorative grass cut from the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 340. The hygroscopic agent may be incorporated in the secondsheet or web of material 352 upon formation of the second sheet or webof material 352, or the hygroscopic agent may be applied to at least aportion of one surface of the second sheet or web of material 352.

[0134] The term “hygroscopic agent” as used herein will be understood torefer to any material which can be applied to or incorporated in a sheetor web of material or a lacquer applied to the sheet or web of materialand which expands or swells upon exposure to moisture. Many types ofhygroscopic agents are known to those of ordinary skill in the art andcould be utilized in the manner described herein. In particular, gelatinand pectin have been utilized as hygroscopic agents in the mannerdescribed herein; however, the invention is not limited to the use ofsuch compounds as hygroscopic agents.

[0135] The sheet or web of laminated material 340 may be shredded or cutto produce decorative grass wherein the individual strands of decorativegrass are provided with a substantially linear, flat configuration. Thestrands of decorative grass may be packaged, stored, shipped anddisplayed in such a substantially linear, flat configuration, allowingthe consumer to curl the decorative grass at the point of use byexposing the strands of decorative grass to moisture. In this manner,the substantially flat, individual strands of decorative grass are moreeasily separated by the consumer than strands of decorative grass havingcurled or crimped configurations which are intertwined in a cohesivemass. In addition, such method allows for easy removal of a portion ofthe stands of decorative grass and easy storage of the remaining portionof the decorative grass for future use. However, it is to be understoodthat the present invention is not limited to curling the decorativegrass at the point of sale or the point of use, and decorative grassformed as described above may be curled at the point of production, ifdesired.

[0136] Optionally, the sheet or web of laminated material 340 may becurled by exposure to moisture prior to cutting or shredding to formdecorative grass. Shown in FIG. 33 is the sheet or web of laminatedmaterial 340 which has been exposed to moisture, and therefore a curlhas been formed along the length 346 thereof.

[0137] In addition, while it is described and illustrated herein thatthe sheet or web of laminated material 340, and therefore the strands ofdecorative grass formed therefrom, is provided with a curl along thelength 346 thereof, it is to be understood that the sheet or web oflaminated material 340, as well as the strands of decorative grassformed therefrom, may be provided with a curl along the width 348thereof, or the curl may be disposed diagonally and span both the length346 and width 348 thereof. The decorative grass formed from the sheet orweb of laminated material 340 will have a configuration substantiallysimilar to the configuration of the decorative grass 310 and 310 adescribed herein before with reference to FIGS. 26A and 26B.

[0138] It is to be understood that the present invention is not limitedto the use of laminated materials when heat shrinkable and hygroscopicmaterials are utilized as activatable curling agents. For example, thedecorative grass may be formed of an unlaminated sheet or web ofmaterial having a lacquer containing a hygroscopic agent disposed on atleast a portion of one surface thereof. In a further alternative, asheet or web of heat shrinkable material may be formed by extruding witha multiple extruder into the same die or into different dies two resinsthat contract at a different rate when heated or exposed to moisture. Inyet another alternative, a sheet or web of heat shrinkable material maybe formed by extruding through a multiple screw extruder or throughmultiple extruders by placing resin into the same die or into multipledies different melt temperature webs and pulling the material away fromthe die after one of the webs has partially or completely solidified,thereby imparting stress or stretch in one of the webs which is a lesseramount of stretch than in the other web. Optionally, the beforedescribed method may be utilized with the stretch occurring after bothwebs have solidified. Any of the above described methods may be utilizedwherein one web is mated to the other web within the flow of resinoccurring at an angle to the first web, thereby imparting a differentialcontraction level at an angle to the machine direction, therebyfacilitating production of helically curled strands of decorative grass.In addition, any of the above described methods may be utilized togetherand alternated so as to cause varying curls in the same strand ordifferent strands of decorative grass cut from the same web.

[0139] Another method of causing a sheet or web of material from whichdecorative grass is produced to curl involves coextruding a shrinkablematerial with a non-shrinkable material and heating them subsequently.Such method may be used in conjunction with prestretching the film at orafter the time of extrusion. Indeed, any of the methods described hereinwhich include the use of heat shrinkable materials may also be combinedwith the method of prestretching the sheet or web of material from whichthe decorative grass is produced.

[0140] In addition, it is also to be understood that the presentinvention is not limited to the use of heat shrinkable and hygroscopicmaterials as activatable curling agents which allow the decorative grassto be curled upon activation. The present invention also envisions otheractivatable curling agents, such as the use of chemicals which will curlthe decorative grass upon treatment with solvents or other chemicals, aswell as other methods of incorporating activatable curling agents whichare known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0141] While methods of providing decorative grass with a curledconfiguration have been described herein, all of the above describedmethods can be used to provide decorative grass with configurationsother than curls. For example, rather than applying differentiallyexpanding or contracting materials in an overall or uniform manner, suchmaterials may be applied in a manner which allows the contracting orexpanding material to be applied at only certain points, or suchmaterials may be applied at differential thicknesses at differentpoints, or, in the case of the hygroscopic materials, such materials maybe applied with barriers to moisture absorption at certain points.Application of such materials in the above described methods results indifferential folding of the strands of decorative grass, and rather thanhaving a curl of roughly smooth and uniform dimensions, a crimpedmaterial or a combination of crimped and curled material could beachieved.

[0142] Additionally in lieu of applying the above-noted expanding orcontracting materials to a sheet or web of material in the form ofstrips, such materials could be applied in any shape, such as a circle,so that when contraction occurs, a three dimensional configuration wouldbe formed which could serve decorative and/or cushioning and/orinsulating purposes.

[0143] In a further alternative, the strands of decorative grass neednot be curled solely in a concentric or torsion spring manner or in ahelical or bed spring-type manner, resulting from differentialcontraction or expansion across the length of the strands, but suchstrands could also be curled or curved due to differential contractionor expansion across the width of the strand.

[0144] Changes may be made in the construction and the operation of thevarious components, elements and assemblies described herein or in thesteps or the sequence of steps of the methods described herein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in thefollowing claims.

What is claimed:
 1. A curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the curled decorative grass produced by cutting a curled web of material into curled segments having a predetermined width, the curled web of material comprising: a polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil wherein at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film is modified to provide an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper.
 2. The curled decorative grass of claim 1 wherein the polymeric film is further provided with at least one of a printed pattern disposed on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, an embossed pattern disposed on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, and combinations thereof.
 3. The curled decorative grass of claim 2 wherein the polymeric film is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are in registry with one another.
 4. The curled decorative grass of claim 2 wherein the polymeric film is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are out of registry with one another.
 5. The curled decorative grass of claim 1 wherein the appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper is provided by at least one of applying a matte finish to at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, texturing at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, printing a pattern on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, embossing at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, and combinations thereof.
 6. A curled decorative grass having an appearance simulating the appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the curled decorative grass produced by cutting a curled laminated material into curled segments having a predetermined width, the curled laminated material comprising: a polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface and a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil; and a material laminated to at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, at least a portion of one surface of one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto being modified to provide at least a portion of one surface of the laminated material and the decorative grass produced therefrom with an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper.
 7. The curled decorative grass of claim 6 wherein the material laminated to the polymeric film is a polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil.
 8. The curled decorative grass of claim 6 wherein at least one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto is further provided with at least one of a printed pattern disposed on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, an embossed pattern disposed on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, and combinations thereof.
 9. The curled decorative grass of claim 8 wherein at least one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto is provided with a printed pattern and at least one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto is provided with an embossed pattern, and the printed and embossed patterns are in registry with one another.
 10. The curled decorative grass of claim 8 wherein at least one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto is provided with a printed pattern and at least one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto is provided with an embossed pattern, and the printed and embossed patterns are out of registry with one another.
 11. The curled decorative grass of claim 6 wherein the material laminated to the polymeric film is formed of a differentially contracting or expanding material such that upon activation the material laminated to the polymeric film contracts or expands and thereby curls the laminated material formed therefrom.
 12. A curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the curled decorative grass produced by cutting a curled web of material into curled segments having a predetermined width, the curled web of material comprising: a polymeric film having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film is provided with an embossed pattern which provides an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper.
 13. The curled decorative grass of claim 12 wherein the polymeric film is further provided with a printed pattern disposed on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof.
 14. The curled decorative grass of claim 13 wherein the printed and embossed patterns are in registry with one another.
 15. The curled decorative grass of claim 13 wherein the printed and embossed patterns are out of registry with one another.
 16. A method for making curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the method comprising the steps of: providing a material having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof; curling the material having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof to provide a curled material; cutting the curled material having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof to form curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 17. The method of claim 16 wherein the step of cutting the curled material is further defined as slitting the curled material to provide a slit curled material having a plurality of curled strips of a predetermined width and thereafter cutting the plurality of curled strips of the slit curled material into curled segments so that the curled decorative grass formed of such curled segments has an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 18. The method of claim 17 wherein the material has a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mil.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein the material is formed of a polymeric film.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein the polymeric film is polypropylene film.
 21. The method of claim 16 wherein the material is a laminated material formed of at least two polymeric films.
 22. The method of claim 16 wherein the material is a laminated material formed of at least one polymeric film and a metallized foil.
 23. The method of claim 16 wherein the step of curling the material includes passing the material over at least one curl bar.
 24. The method of claim 16 wherein, in the step of providing the material, the material is formed of a differentially contracting or expanding material, and the step of curling the material includes exposing the material to an agent which activates the material to contract or expand and therefore curl.
 25. A method for forming curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the method comprising the steps of: providing a web of polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface and a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil wherein at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film is modified to provide a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper; curling the web of polymeric film to provide a curled web of polymeric film; and cutting at least a portion of the curled web of polymeric film to form curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 26. The method of claim 25 wherein the step of cutting at least a portion of the curled web of polymeric film to form curled decorative grass comprises: slitting the curled web of polymeric film to provide a slit curled web of polymeric film having a plurality of curled strips of a predetermined width wherein the plurality of curled strips of the slit curled web of polymeric film have at least a portion of one surface thereof textured or modified to provide the curled segments with a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper; and cutting the plurality of curled strips of the slit curled web of polymeric film to form curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 27. The method of claim 26 wherein the web of polymeric film is further provided with at least one of a printed pattern on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, an embossed pattern on at least a portion of one of the upper and lower surfaces thereof, and combinations thereof.
 28. The method of claim 27 wherein the web of polymeric film is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are in registry with one another.
 29. The method of claim 27 wherein the web of polymeric film is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are out of registry with one another.
 30. A method for forming curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof, the method comprising the steps of: providing a laminated material comprising: a polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface and a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mil; and a material laminated to at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film, at least a portion of one surface of one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto being modified so as to provide at least a portion of one surface of the laminated material with an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper; curling the laminated material to provide a curled laminated material; and cutting the curled laminated material to produce curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 31. The method of claim 30 wherein the step of cutting the curled laminated material comprises: slitting the curled laminated material to provide a slit curled laminated material having a plurality of curled strips of a predetermined width; and cutting the plurality of curled strips of the slit curled laminated material into curled segments to form curled decorative grass having an appearance or texture simulating the appearance or texture of paper on at least a portion of one surface thereof.
 32. The method of claim 30 wherein the laminated material is further provided with at least one of a printed pattern on at least one surface thereof, an embossed pattern on at least one surface thereof, and combinations thereof.
 33. The method of claim 32 wherein the laminated material is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are in registry with one another.
 34. The method of claim 32 wherein the laminated material is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and the printed and embossed patterns are out of registry with one another.
 35. The method of claim 30 wherein, in the step of providing a laminated material, the material laminated to the polymeric film is a polymeric film or metallized foil and has a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mil.
 36. The method of claim 30 wherein, in the step of providing the laminated material, the modification to at least a portion of one surface of one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto to provide a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper comprises: providing a matte finish on at least a portion of one surface of one of the polymeric film and the material laminated thereto, the matte finish having a plurality of holes formed therein whereby the matte finish provides such surface with a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appearance of paper. 